I expect most of us find having tradespeople working in the house difficult.

[whatwouldyoudoifisangoutofkey]

I hate it , worry about the loo ( will they want to use it when I'm in there) , how often I should offer tea/coffee , should it be with biscuits , should I say sit down and drink it ,, blah ,blah.
But I'm just waiting for the joiner to come and thinking that maybe he has concerns as well.
Will the house be 110 ° ,, will it be clean, will they be saying "while you're here could you also just ..", will the husband be breathing down my neck, will they be paranoid about dust .
Blah , blah ...

I'd hope it's not "most" of us. I let them in, offer tea/coffee at regular periods, sometimes biscuits if they're here long enough. They can use the loo as much as they need to.

I'm normally working so I let them know where I'll be and to shout me if they need me.

Well I wasn't in the loo with him!
I was in the sitting room, which is why I said he kept leaving the job to talk to me.
He even came back and knocked my door after finishing to show me something he'd been telling me about.

Make sure the working area is clear in advance, then when they arrive discuss what needs doing maybe talk around the subject a bit, provide tea and coffee, if they chat, chat back, then let them get on with it but be around if they need anything. As for "while you're here", I might ask them to quickly look at something else with a view to coming back another time but I'd never expect them to do it there and then unless they are around for a day + and it's only a 5 min extra job, I wouldn't do it if they were just in and out servicing the boiler or whatever.

Seems an odd collection of things to worry about? I offer them a drink, tell them to ask if they want anything and let them get on with it

They are there to shit in the toilet? Not something I'd pay for but each to the own. 😂

I quite like having tradesmen over. I offer a brew if they want one. Some of them obviously just want to get on with it and be left alone and refuse a drink or anything. Some of them are more chatty and enjoy a tea break and a bit of chat. I just play it by ear. Generally if I'm having a brew I offer one to the ones who seem to enjoy one.

I do check in with them and see how things are progressing and whether they have any issues and whether they will finish on time etc, but otherwise just let them get on with it. They can of course use my loo if they want to. I just make sure I give it a wipe down and change hand towels when they are gone.

The post you quoted said 'As that's what they are for'.

Not that's what the tradesmen are there for! 🤣

The bits I don’t like:

Uncertainty over when they’re going to arrive. Not arriving when they said they would. This is pretty common IME, not universal but common.

If the work is not done quite right and you need to ask them to re do something. I HATE this but I also hate myself if I wimp out of saying it and then feel cross every time I see the badly done work.

I also find it really stressful having people in be house. Love the idea of ones that just get on with it and don’t feel the need to chat. I always get the whole life story and people who want to talk to me all the time, which I hate. I usually make tea/coffee first thing then leave things out for them to make it throughout the day.

Don't order them to sit down and drink their brews. Just go and place them close by and tell them they are there. Pop biscuits on a plate if you want. They aren't expected. If it's a long job, they will have their own food.

Nope. I don't understand the angst about this! Why would it be a problem for them to use the toilet?

Good tradespeople are worth their weight in gold and should be treated very decently. If I have someone good come in to do a job, I want them to leave feeling they would be happy to work for me again. I don't, however, go quite as far as my Mum who offers to make them lunch.

It is also good to pick their brains about other tradespeople in the area that they rate. I have had a right saga trying to get someone to do some work on my roof and, on one occasion, was badly let down by someone on the day they were meant to start so I had to begin the search again.

I was telling a guy who came to do a small outside job about this and asking for recommendations. He went to the trouble of calling someone else to get the number of a roofer they rated. Not only that, when the roofer came round, he said he'd met the recommender in the pub and had been told he had to help me out because I'd had a difficult time and I was a 'nice lady'. Fingers crossed!

Yes to picking their brains about other trades, it is also really useful if they explain to you what they are doing so you understand e.g. how your heating system works for future reference (handy if something else goes wrong for describing it and working out what the problem is), also anything you could be doing better to optimise efficiency or whatever.

Anyone coming into your house to work should be treated very decently.

Has anyone suggested otherwise?

@ShyMaryEllen
It was my rather pedantic reaction to
"Good tradespeople are worth their weight in gold and should be treated very decently"

Ah, I see. I didn't pick up on that without the context, but I can't disagree 😀

Good tradespeople are worth their weight in gold, you do not want to appear on their do not answer list however if you treat them decently they help you out in an emergency & go out of their way for you

This is the way. Better still get them their own kettle for a fiver, own milk and own biscuits. They will love you.